Herford (district)

Herford
District
Country	Germany
State	North Rhine-Westphalia
Adm. region	Detmold
Capital	Herford
Area
• Total	449.95 km2 (173.73 sq mi)
Population (31 December 2013)
• Total	248,988
• Density	550/km2 (1,400/sq mi)
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
• Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Vehicle registration	HF
Website	http://www.kreis-herford.de

Herford (German pronunciation: [ˈhɛʁfɔʁt]) is a Kreis (district) in the northeastern part of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Neighboring districts are Minden-Lübbecke, Lippe, the urban district of Bielefeld, and the districts Gütersloh and Osnabrück.

History

The region is also known as Wittekind's land, as the last fights of Wittekind's Saxon tribes against Charlemagne took place here. He is believed to be buried in the town of Enger.

When the area became part of the Prussian province Westphalia, the first district Herford was created in 1816. In 1832 it was merged with the district Bünde. In 1911, the city of Herford left the district; however, it lost its status as an independent urban district in 1969. The district reached its current size in 1973 when the municipality Uffeln, which was formerly in the district Minden, was merged into the city Vlotho.

Geography

The district is located between the three mountain chains of the Wiehen Hills in the north and the Teutoburg Forest in the south. To the northeast it is bounded by the Weser river.

Coat of arms

The black horse of Wittekind is depicted in the coat of arms of the district. After Wittekind was baptized Charlemagne gave him a white horse as present, which is now in the coat of arms of North Rhine-Westphalia and Lower Saxony.

Towns and municipalities

Towns	Municipalities
Bünde Enger Herford Löhne Spenge Vlotho	Hiddenhausen Kirchlengern Rödinghausen

External links

Media related to at Wikimedia Commons

• Official website (German)